Because success isn’t for the chosen few, it’s for those who choose – Amy & Jordan

It happened a year and a half ago. I was in a meeting when my sister called my cell phone. I hit ignore. She called again. I hit ignore. Whatever it was, it could wait. I put my phone in my purse at my feet. I could feel it vibrate. She was texting me. Almost an hour later, I finally walk out the door, and call her. “We’re getting a divorce…” she said through tears. For anyone who knows my sister, she doesn’t let her guard down often, so when she’s crying, it’s a big deal. That cry immediately evokes big sister Ryan mode. I was angry, I was sad, I was devastated for them. Yes, them. My sister and nephew who was turning one in less than two weeks. How do I fix this? How do I make the hurt go away? The hardest part for me at that moment was being over 2,000 miles away from them. My husband, immediately told me to go to her. So, two days later I jumped on a plane, packed her up and brought them back to Phoenix with me. Once we got back, began some really hard and some really fun times. Not being in the same state for over four years was a challenge, so we made up for lost time. I loved on my little nephew Milo. He is so stinkin cute, and though I was sad for them, a part of me was happy that I would get to watch him grow up first hand, instead of through pictures and short visits. I put my business on hold. Hung out, laughed and fought with my sister, trying to distract her from what had to be a hard and scary time. Then she got a job, so I naturally watched Milo full-time. Which for anyone who knows me, was harder than I realized since it had been 5+years since I had a toddler in the house. We had fun though. I got to know all there was about Curious George and the Cat in the Hat, and cars, and trucks and we also played dolls. Because that’s what I had at the house and it was fun! The look on his face pretty much says it all ; )

The next thing you know, it’s August, and it hit me one day like a ton of bricks. I had NO weddings for the fall. Not one. Commence panic. Questioning my worth, what I had missed, what had I done wrong to miss an entire season’s worth of weddings? I was sad, I was despondent. And for weeks I felt like my business was circling the drain. Then I made the best decision I have made in my business to date. I sent an email. At 11pm…

“Dear Amy & Jordan,

This is hard to write but here goes…this fall I have a whopping zero weddings booked, which I have been too embarrassed to admit to myself, let alone just about anyone else. Though I booked 3 weddings for the spring in the last 2 months, I am definitely not where I thought I’d be at this point, and I know I have no one to blame but myself. I quit my job 2 years ago to follow my passion, and I feel like I’m not only letting myself down, but my heart breaks knowing that my husband has been the most loving and supportive person in my life, who encouraged me to chase this dream, and I’m failing. After praying and several attempts at writing this email, I decided to be vulnerable and humble enough to ask for help. Thank you for reading this. Now I’m going to go hide under a rock and try not to die of embarrassment after I send this ; )

See, I had met Amy & Jordan a couple years before at a workshop that we attended one evening. It was in a sketchy area of town, and as I walked out, I asked if they could walk me to my car. And they happily agreed. I don’t think I laughed so much in the five minutes it took us to get to my car. They were adorable, hilarious and so in love! I immediately went home and did what any normal person would do, I looked them up online, liked their Facebook page and started following their blog. Unbeknownst to me, this was at a critical time in their business, just as they were getting ready to make the leap into full-time photography. I would see their amazing work all the time and wonder, why does this gorgeous picture only have 10 likes?! They’re awesome! Steadily, I watched those 10 likes on images, turn into 50, 100, and so on. I watched them figure out who they were as business owners and photographers, and celebrated (quietly behind my computer) as their business bloomed.

So, it was no accident that these two were who I reached out to in that moment of crisis. I had seen them turn their business into this amazing thing, all while openly sharing their tips for success with all of us in the industry in Facebook groups. I woke up the morning after sending that email, to a heartfelt message that in itself was enough to give me a boost. We emailed back and forth, and shortly afterward I came to their house and we spent time discussing who I was, what I had been doing as a business owner, where I wanted to go as a photographer, what I was afraid of, what significant changes I could make immediately, and what I should work on soon and on and on. They also let me know that what stopping everything for several months to spend time with my sister and nephew was not only okay, but it was something more important that working on my business. Family is important, and I’ll never forget that lesson. I went home on a mission! And then, within hours was at a standstill. See, one of the ‘immediate’ to-do’s was my bio. Amy and Jordan were right when they said it just wasn’t me, this laugh too loud, smile too much person they had gotten to know. So, back to the drawing board I went. Who am I? What do I like? What do people see when they meet me? And how the heck do I articulate that on my website? I told my husband, Steve how lost I was, and showed him what I had written so far. He told me to call it a night and start fresh the next day. I took his advice and went to bed. The next morning, I woke up to, what I can only describe as one of the most loving acts I have been blessed with in our marriage. Steve spent the night writing my bio for me. It was perfect, and cried like a baby as I read it. It was me, through his eyes, and it was such a beautiful story. First Amy and Jordan were there, cheering me on, saying they saw me, knew my struggles, because it had been theirs at one point too. And then my husband shows me how others see me, and it was this person that I still can’t believe I get to be everyday, and strive to be on the days when things get hard and I get hangry! You can read his act of love here.

When Amy & Jordan announced they were holding a workshop, I was one of the first in line ready to go! If I had learned so much from them in 2 hours of coaching, I knew 2 days with them would be a game changer. And it was! Boy it was! I’ll leave them to share their tips, advice and techniques, but I will say that I left that workshop with a drive I had never had before. I was on fire about my business and my family and wanted to not only get to where I was before, but exceed it. Here it is, 14 months later, and I have booked 41 weddings since I sent that email to them. They have cheered me on, encouraged me and even gotten real with me about some things, and that’s what I needed more than anything. I’ve cried I don’t know how many times since their workshop, but the difference is, that they’re tears of joy. They gave me the tools, they encouraged me and I used that to drive me, create momentum and now I am blessed beyond what I ever could have imagined. I now have the privilege of knowing so many couples, becoming friends with them, capturing their love and excitedly awaiting the engagements and weddings that are ahead. I would be remiss if I didn’t tell every photographer I could about my secret weapons. If you are lost, if you know where you want to be as a photographer, but don’t know how to get there, I want you to know that I too was there. And this isn’t the end, it’s just the beginning. It’s all about love, service, determination and momentum. My story is just one of the many they’ve helped change. If you’re interested in taking that leap, attending that workshop, they’re having one in January! And I can’t tell enough people about it! I love these two like family, and you will too!

Here’s the link: http://amyandjordan.com/workshops